Chapter Six
The beige Dodge Diplomat came to a stop, out in the middle of nowhere in the desert. The car doors opened and everyone got out. Pam slid off the overcoat she wore over the suit and dropped it on the seat. The car doors were closed as Bill looked around.
"Okay, Counselor, what's up first?" Bill asked.
"How about flying?" Pam suggested, turning to Ralph.
He nodded. "First thing I learned. Just remember, three steps and jump."
"Okay." Pam moved around the guys and stood off to one side. She ran three steps and pushed off, shooting up into the air. She couldn't help the scream that escaped her lips. She didn't know it because she hadn't been there, but her first flight was just as bad as Ralph's had been.
Ralph and Bill watched as Pam dipped from side to side, tumbled, and basically looked like she was inside an invisible pinball machine.
Bill rolled his eyes. "Wouldja look-it that? Even the Counselor can't fly straight! What's with the jammies, anyway? They got a broken aileron or somethin'?"
Ralph cupped his hands around his mouth, trying to make sure he could be heard. "Keep your arms straight, Pam! Relax a little!"
She made a sharp banking turn and started toward back where the guys were... and also began a descent.
Bill rolled his eyes. "One crash landing comin' up."
As Pam neared the guys, she banked sharply again... and crashed into Ralph, causing both of them to go tumbling on the sand. Pam stopped, laying on her back and sat up, shaking her head.
Ralph, however, was face down in the sand. He lifted his head and looked dazedly at Pam. "Gotta work on your landings, Pamela..." And he thumped his head back down.
Pam frowned. "I'm sorry, Ralph. I was trying to pull up for the landing and turned, instead." She got up and dusted herself off, then helped him up. "I didn't get your knee, did I?"
Bill approached as Pam helped Ralph dust himself off and cut off Ralph's response, "That's just great, Counselor. Wanna do any more harm to the kid, here?" He motioned to Ralph.
Ralph waved it off. "Just call me your punching bag." He made a face, then sighed. "What do you want to try next, Pam?"
Bill pulled out his gun. "How about the ol' bullet proof test?"
Pam's eyes widened. "I'm not ready for that, yet, Bill. How about invisibility?"
"That's simple... and shouldn't cause any harm to anyone," Ralph said. "It's a little harder to explain. You just sort of clear your mind and push."
"Push?" Pam echoed.
Ralph shrugged. "Yes."
Pam nodded and emulated Ralph's approach to becoming invisible. She bowed her head and closed her eyes. She began to flicker.
"Little more concentration..." Ralph urged.
Her hands clenched into fists. Finally, she flickered out completely.
Bill holstered his gun and folded his arms. "But can the Counselor stay invisible?"
"Yes, I--" Pam began, and blinked visible again. She gave a sheepish smile. "I can work on that."
Ralph turned to him. "That was a dirty trick, Bill."
"But necessary," Bill said.
"Anyway," Ralph said, "lets try a few more things..."
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Later that evening, Bill drove the trio out of the desert. Pam sat in the passenger seat, once again wearing the overcoat.
"I thought that went rather well," Pam said, glancing at Bill.
Bill made an aggravated sound. "Yeah... right."
"Oh, come on, Bill! It wasn't that bad! I didn't set the car on fire!"
"No, but that cactus sure went up in smoke."
"The telekinesis worked."
"Counselor, you were aiming for a rock and you moved the kid instead," Bill said, giving her a quick glance. "Then you dropped him. No wonder he's sleeping it off back there."
Pam frowned and glanced to the back, where Ralph was sleeping, reclined against the back seat with his bum leg stretched out across the back and his foot resting on the center compartment of the front seat. "At least I thought to put the seat belt around him before we started off. That's all he'd need is for you to slam on the brakes and he wakes up because he's on the floor back there."
"I wouldn't do that! Not on purpose anyway."
"Well, I didn't do any harm with the speed running."
"Not much. You kicked up enough dust that both me and the kid thought we were gonna cough up a lung."
"Bill, I was trying, at least! I'm not used to having the suit! It's only my first day," Pam argued, with Bill grumbling in response.
Silence reigned between the two as Bill continued to drive. The only sound remaining was the occassional stuffy-nosed snore from Ralph in the back.
Some time later, Bill pulled the car up in front of the ranch-style house. He turned to Pam. "Listen, Counselor, I'm just trying to help. I know you're doing your best. I want these guys badly, though. Now even more for what they've put Ralph through."
Pam nodded. "We'll work on this again in the morning." She opened the door and got out.
Bill leaned over. "Counselor, you got the kid okay?"
Pam opened the back door and leaned in to unbuckle the still sleeping Ralph. "I've got the jammies. No problem," she replied with a smile and a hint of sarcasm, then put an arm under his shoulders and the other under his knees, careful of the injured one, and picked him up. She pushed a hip against the door to close it. "Night, Bill."
Bill waved, then pulled away.
Pam stopped in front of the door. The house key was in the coat pocket, but she'd have to set Ralph down--and she wasn't sure enough of her telekinesis to not drop him again.
"Point and concentrate," came the groggy answer.
She smiled down at Ralph, whose eyes were half open. "Thanks, hon."
"Anytime."
Pam concentrated on the door knob, pointing an index finger. It took a moment, then a click was heard and the door swung open. She grinned and went in, closing the door after them. She walked through the living room, straight through to the bedroom, where she finally set Ralph down on the bed.
Ralph propped himself up on his elbows, watching as Pam slid off the overcoat. "Despite what Bill says, you did very well with the suit, first day and all."
"Thank you, Ralph," Pam said, smiling. She unbuttoned the cape and pulled it off, then draped it over an arm. "Ralph, what have I gotten into? I know what you and Bill do... and I'm not so sure I can handle it."
Ralph eased himself up off the bed, keeping one hand on the bed to steady himself as he moved closer to her. "Pamela, I know you can handle this. So does the suit. If the suit didn't think you could, it wouldn't have transferred to you. It knows that we need to catch Methier and his cohorts." He paused to fend off a sneeze. "And frankly, I don't feel like I'm of much use in my current state, even with the jammies on."
Pam brushed the curls from his forehead, smiling. "Thank you, hon." Then her eyes widened slightly, her hand lingering on his forehead. "Ralph, you feel warm..."
He gave a snort. "I'd be surprised if I didn't."
"You'd better lie back down. Would you like a cold pack...?"
Ralph waved it off. "No, no more cold stuff. I'll be fine. Listen, why don't you practice a little bit more in the suit, since it's still relatively early."
Pam nodded. "Maybe I will." She grinned. "And you go back to sleep. I want to hear snoring when I come back in here in a few hours." She gave him a wink.
"Pamela, I do not snore," he responded, returning the wink, then settled back down on the bed.
"Sure, Ralph, sure." She chuckled, headed for the door.
"Oh, and Pam?"
She turned back to him just before she reached the doorway. "Yes, hon?"
"Keep the fire extinguisher handy in case you set anything on fire accidentally."
Pam stuck her tongue out at him and closed the door after her.
Ralph sighed. "I wasn't being facetious, though..."
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Across town, an irate Methier paced back and forth, in the back room of an arcade. The room had been turned into an office, with the arcade acting as a front.
Gunnar and Jesse stood by the wall, near the door. Gunnar folded his arms. "Boss--"
Methier stopped, eyes wide. "Don't! Listen, you two know what happened as well as I do. We all spotted that Hinkley guy wearing the weird red get up. We saw him and his buddies get trapped behind those crates. What I can't figure out, is why those bullets seemed to ricochet in mid-air and why Hinkley suddenly appeared out of nowhere, falling to the floor. There is no such thing as the invisible man!"
"Boss--" Jesse tried.
"I don't want to hear it!" Methier interrupted. "I want Hinkley and I want that money. If I don't get that money, we're going to have some incredibly unfriendly men on our backs, breathing down our necks. You two are going after him again and this time you're going to do it right, dammit!"
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